Cover Image: OnCue collected $301,500 during its annual St. Jude Halloween Promotion to benefit St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
Convenience stores are community stores. Each year our industry contributes more than $1 billion to charitable and community groups.
Nearly every convenience retail company (95%) supports charitable causes, with 66% supporting five or more charities, according to a NACS member survey. Nearly all companies support local charities (91%), and about half of all retailers (47%) also support national charities. In addition, more than three in four retailers (76%) contribute to youth sports groups and more than two thirds (69%) contribute to local schools via PTAs and other fundraising activities.
In late 2021, numerous convenience retailers showed their support in various ways:
Gulf Oil donated $25,000 to the Gerald and Darlene Jordan Boys & Girls Club in Chelsea, Massachusetts, to help the club expand its technology resources. In 2021, the company donated $75,000 to support youth organizations in the Boston community, including the Red Sox Foundation’s RBI program and programs through the American Cancer Society.
“As a company, we are focused on giving back to the Chelsea community and the other communities in which we operate,” said Eric Johnson, president and CEO of Gulf. “Our partnership with the Patriots has allowed us to recognize and act upon a passion we share with the organization for creating and fostering opportunities for our local youth.”
Rutter’s Children’s Charities, in conjunction with York, Pennsylvania-based Rutter’s, donated $20,000 to For the Love of a Veteran in honor of Veteran’s Day.
“We’re very appreciative of all those who selflessly serve our country each and every day,” said Chris Hartman, president of Rutter’s Children’s Charities. “It was an easy decision to support For the Love of a Veteran because of the amazing work they do for any veteran in need of assistance, throughout our communities.”
Pittsburgh-based GetGo Café + Market raised $10,000 for the U.S Marine Corps annual Toys for Tots holiday campaign through the sale of GetGo’s famous tater tots. For the second year in a row, GetGo donated a portion of the proceeds from any order of tots during November to the Marine Corps Toys for Tots.
“Our customers responded so enthusiastically to last year’s Toys for Tots campaign that we knew we had to do it again this year,” said GetGo Chief of Staff Rug Phatak. “We’re proud to partner with our neighbors and the Marine Corps to provide toys and gifts to the children of our communities.”
Love’s Travel Stops raised more than $2.8 million through its annual Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals campaign. Since 1999, the company has raised over $35 million for sick and injured children who live in the states where Love’s stores are located.
“Donating to this organization is one of our favorite events each year, because we get to help children and their caregivers across the country,” said Jenny Love Meyer, chief culture officer and executive vice president for Love’s.
Love’s Travel Stops also contributed $1,036,900 to the United Way of Central Oklahoma through its annual employee campaign in 2021. Since 1999, Love’s has donated more than $8.5 million to the organization.
To celebrate the grand opening of a new store in Tumwater, Washington, Pilot Company donated $5,000 to benefit two area school districts. The Oakville School District and the Rochester School District each received $2,500 as part of Pilot’s commitment to supporting the communities it serves.
Enmarket launched its company-wide initiative in September, across Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina, to benefit the Georgia–South Carolina Region of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) Light The Night® campaign. The company raised more than $125,000 to help in the fight against blood cancers.
“Over the past nine years, Enmarket’s customers have joined with us in raising nearly $900,000 to benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society during this campaign,” said Enmarket President Brett Giesick. “[W]hen we support Light the Night for the 10th year, our goal is to cross the milliondollar mark.”
The GATE Foundation hosted a pink ribbon paper icon campaign to benefit the American Cancer Society. GATE Stores customers and employees raised $65,000.
The GATE Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Jacksonville, Florida-based GATE Petroleum Company, donated $65,000 to the American Cancer Society to support breast cancer research and awareness.
“GATE Stores have hosted the pink ribbon paper icon campaign for 11 years now,” said Kathy Brady, executive director of the GATE Foundation. “In that time, our customers have surpassed $1 million in donations to the American Cancer Society and the fight against breast cancer. There is so much enthusiasm and support for this campaign among our customers and employees,” she said.
Oklahoma-based OnCue collected $301,500 during its annual St. Jude Halloween Promotion to benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. OnCue has raised $2,915,164 for St. Jude throughout its 15-year partnership, making it the largest regional partner for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. OnCue stores also sold co-branded plastic cups benefiting St. Jude for the third year in a row.
The Spinx Co.’s Spinx Cluck Truck and staff served 355 meals to families in need on Thanksgiving day.
For the second year in a row, The Spinx Co. partnered with Project Host, a local nonprofit in Greenville, South Carolina, to serve free meals to those in need on Thanksgiving Day. During the event, the Spinx Cluck Truck served 355 meals.